


A King Must Be Worthy of The Shield He Wields

by star54kar



Series: Star54Kar's Final Fantasy XV Drabbles [2]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Blood and Injury, Brotherhood: Final Fantasy XV, Emotional Baggage, Gen, Power Dynamics, Pre-Canon, Scars
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-13
Updated: 2020-08-13
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:55:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25882435
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/star54kar/pseuds/star54kar
Summary: The dynamic between a King and his Shield is difficult to navigate between friends and the weight of what a Shield is willing to sacrifice lies heavily on both their shoulders.
Relationships: Gladiolus Amicitia & Noctis Lucis Caelum
Series: Star54Kar's Final Fantasy XV Drabbles [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1696321
Comments: 6
Kudos: 21





	A King Must Be Worthy of The Shield He Wields

**Author's Note:**

  * For [The_PrincessCat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_PrincessCat/gifts).



> Happy Belated Birthday, Cat! I hope it was a good one. Sorry for the delay but I hope that you enjoy this double drabble. I tried my best and this was as close to Gladnoct as I could get. If you put on the shipping goggles and squint really hard, maybe I can get away with it. :)

Gladio is a Shield. 

A living breathing Shield, groomed to stand in between his Prince and danger since the day he was born. 

At first, Noctis thought that Gladio hated him. It wasn’t until Noctis was older that he understood the reason for Gladio’s initial hostility. When you’re raised to die for another person, you want them to be worthy of that potential sacrifice.

But Noctis fucked up and now all he can think about is the blood that gushed down the side of Gladio’s face; the slash of the knife missing his eye by the smallest of fractions. Gladio jumped in front of that knife without hesitation because he would do anything to protect Noctis, no matter the cost to himself. He hates it because Gladio honestly believes his life and safety are worth nothing compared to Noctis’.

Gladio is physically scarred now and he wears it with pride but Noctis bears the emotional burden of that mark. This can never happen again. Noctis throws himself into training. He needs to be faster, stronger, and better. 

If Gladio is willing to die for Noctis, then Noctis needs to be worthy of any sacrifice that Gladio is willing to give.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and Kudos are always appreciated, so please let me know if you enjoyed the story. :)


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